Algorithmic Newsrooms: Ethical and Professional Transformations Driven by AI in Modern Journalism

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming journalism, reshaping how news is sourced, produced, and delivered. While adoption trends in the Global North are well-documented, little is known about how AI integration unfolds in politically sensitive, infrastructurally uneven media systems of the Global South. This study examines AI’s operational, ethical, and professional impacts in North African newsrooms, focusing on Ethiopia, Sudan, and Chad. Drawing on Diffusion of Innovations Theory, Algorithmic Stewardship, and Sociotechnical Systems Theory, we employ a mixed-methods design: a survey of 160 media professionals, 45 semi-structured interviews, and content analysis of 620 AI-generated news items. Findings reveal a rapid-convergence adoption pattern—an accelerated diffusion process yielding efficiency gains (32% reduction in production time; 28% increase in engagement) but also amplifying algorithmic bias and accountability gaps. We propose the Tripartite Governance Model—combining transparency protocols, structured human oversight, and adaptive regulation—to guide ethical integration, and introduce ethical algorithmic literacy as a critical competency for AI-era journalism. The study contributes to theory by extending diffusion and sociotechnical perspectives, to methodology through a triangulated empirical approach, and to practice by offering governance and training blueprints for Global South newsrooms.